Luke l



L.-L. KNIGHT.

' CLOTHES FRAME.

No. 32,104. Patented Apr. 16, 1861 UNITED sTATEs PATENT oE ioE.

LUKE L. KNIGHT, OF BARRE, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO E. AND E. B. HASTINGS, OF SAME PLACE.

CLOTHES-FRAME.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 32,104, dated April 16, 1861.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LUKE L. KNIGHT, of Barre, in the county of Vorcester and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Clothes-Drying Frames; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making a part of this specification, in which Figure 1. isa side elevation of my improved clothes drying frame mounted on a pedestal. Fig. 2. is a top View of Fig. 1. with the ends of the stretching arms broken ofll. Fig. 3. shows one of the metal slides which secure the stretching arms in position.

Similar lettersofreference indicate corresponding parts in the three figures.

This invention relates to a novel improvement in clothes drying frames, which are arranged so as to rotate on the top of a pedestal or pole and which are constructed of four or more arms radiating from a central hub; and the ropes or line on which the clothes are hung are carried around the frame from one arm to the other so as to form several rows of lines.

The nature of my invention consists in hinging or pivoting the radial stretching arms to the hub, and in combining with said hub and hinged or pivoted arms angular brackets and slides, one of the arms of said brackets being in a vertical position and the other arm at a suitable angle, as will be hereinafter fully described, thereby enabling the stretching arms to be readily secured in a closed, or in an open state, and put into a very compact shape when not in immediate useas will be hereinafter fully explained.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention I will proceed to describe its construction and operation.

In the accompanying drawings, A, represents the vertical pedestal on top of which the improved clothes drying frame is supported and allowed to rotate horizontally.

B, is a square hub pivoted to the vertical axis a, on the pedestal A, and allowed to rotat-e freely about this axis. To the four vertical sides of hub B, two-armed brackets are secured one of the arms I), of each of which is in a vertical position and the other arms are inclined at a suitable angle, say. 45

or more or less according to circumstances. These four double-armed brackets are rigidly bolted to the hub B, and they should be made of metal and made strong and inflexible and of a length proportionate to the length of the stretching arms C, C, C, C. Each arm a, and Z), should have a shoulder 0, formed near its outer end for the purpose hereinafter described. The stretching arms C, C, C, C, are pivoted at or near their lower ends to their respective brackets at the points (Z, which is at the angle formed by the vertical and inclined arms of the brackets, as shown in Fig. 1, of the drawings. These stretching arms C, O, are much longer than the bracket arms, and they are all of a uniform length, and taper from their lower to their upper ends as represented in Fig. l. A number of holes e, e, e, e, are made transversely through each arm at regular intervals apart, and through these holes the ropes g, g, g, g, are passed and carriedaround the frame from one' arm to the other. These ropes g, g, 9,9, are stretched tightly when the arms C, C, C, C, are secured in the positions represented in Figs. 1, and 2, so that these ropes will not sag when the clothes are hung on them. Before the ropes are put on the stretching arms C, a metal slide G, shown in Fig. 3, is slipped on each arm as represented in the drawings. These slides are used to secure their respective stretching arms G, to the ends of their arms a, or Z), of the brackets as shown in Fig. 1, where one of the arms C, is represented in red lines when it is secured in a closed position.

Now it will be seen from the foregoing description of my improvement in rotary clothes drying frames that by slipping the slides G, of each arm C, upward these arms C, may be brought to a vertical position and secured in this position to the arms a, of the brackets by slipping the slides down on the ends of these arms (L. Then by detaching the arms C, from arms a, a, a, a, and securing the arms C, to arms 5, the frame will be in a condition to receive the articles tobe dried. l/Vhen slides G, are slipped down over the ends of arms a, or Z), they come in contact with the shoulders 0, on these arms which prevent the slides from moving down any farther. Thus it will be seen that the frame can be opened and shut at pleasure and secured firmly in either condition with little labor or trouble. as and for the Having thus described my invention, what described. I claim as new and desire to secure by Let- 5 ters Patent; is,

I-Iingin or pivoting the stretching arms C, C, C, 8, t0 hub B and combining" there- Witnesses with the two-armed brackets .and slides G,

purposes herein shown and LUKE L. KNIGHT.

EDWIN Woons, G120. L. JOHNSON. 

